September Is National Preparedness Month

Ready Marine Corps is recruiting Marines, families, and all personnel this September to improve their emergency preparedness as part of National Preparedness Month (NPM).

As the Marine Corps’ official readiness program, Ready Marine Corps (www.ready.marines.mil) provides resources to bolster knowledge of all hazards, steps for making emergency plans, and a checklist for building a properly stocked “go bag.”

“Marines know how to improvise, adapt, and overcome because they train to meet any challenge,” said Mark Brown, Head of the Emergency Management Section for HQMC MCICOM G-3 Installation Protection Branch. “With emergency preparedness, training is making an evacuation plan or stocking an emergency supply kit so that you and your family can face any hazard.”

Basic Training 

Participate in National Preparedness Month by taking a few actions to improve readiness:

1. Learn about potential hazards by visiting Ready Marine Corps at www.ready.marines.mil.
2. Verify, update, and add personal contact information in the Enterprise Mass Notification System (EMNS).
3. Create communication plans for contacting your loved ones during an emergency using templates from Ready Marine Corps and test them!
4. Build an emergency kit that will sustain you and each family member for 72 hours.
5. Contact your installation’s Marine Corps Family Team Building (MCFTB) office, a Marine Corps Community Services (MCCS) program, to find out when the next family readiness training is scheduled. Sign up!
6. Plan with neighbors to support each other and share resources.
7. Practice a home evacuation plan, hold a tornado drill, plan an evacuation route, etc.
8. Clean gutters, trim trees and shrubbery, install shutters, and do other maintenance to reduce potential injury and property damage.
9. Take photos of property and obtain insurance for relevant hazards.
10. Store important documents in a safe, waterproof, and portable container.

Launched in 2015 by Headquarters Marine Corps through MCICOM, Ready Marine Corps supports national readiness campaigns such as FEMA’s PrepareAthon and Ready.gov’s National Preparedness Month. For more information about the program or to request specific outreach materials, email Ready@USMC.mil.  Follow the program on Facebook and Twitter @ReadyUSMC for daily preparedness tips.